


First Winter's Crest

by TwinVax



Series: Critrole Stories [60]
Category: Critical Role (Web Series)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern with Magic, Christmas Fluff, Domestic Fluff, Gen, Gift Exchange, Jester is happy, Winter’s Crest Gifts, everyones first holiday together, so much glitter, tree shenanigans, winters crest
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-25
Updated: 2018-12-25
Packaged: 2019-09-27 11:29:28
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 988
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17161178
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TwinVax/pseuds/TwinVax
Summary: The Mighty Nein set up a tree for Winter’s Crest. It’s everyones first time with the holiday, and that makes it special for Jester. The rest see it the same way.





	First Winter's Crest

**Author's Note:**

  * For [awkwardacity](https://archiveofourown.org/users/awkwardacity/gifts).



The door slammed open as Jester rushed into the house, starting Nott from the stairs leading to the second floor, where shed been admiring the tinsel and pretty baubles hung to the banister, ears perked upward as she watched. The blue tiefling carried a large box with her, that she dropped heavily into the empty space she’d just made in the living room an hour ago, while the front door was opened gently as Fjord and Yasha entered with smaller boxes they handled more carefully.

Beau walked into the room after them both, small plastic baggy in hand as she flopped down on the couch, arms crossed, “I’m not sure glitter is going to work, Jester.”

Jester rocked back on her heels once she’d pried open the top of the box, smiling brightly towards her, tail lashing in her excitement, “It will! It will make the tree sparkle so much more than it will with just the ornaments and boring old tinsel!” she looked over at Nott on the stairs, bouncing over to look at her between the wooden banister slats, “Where’s Caleb and Caduceus? They need to be here to help us, it’s something we have to do together!” 

Nott leaned back from the banister, standing quickly enough that she caused a bell hanging to ring for a moment, “Caleb is upstairs, reading I think. Caduceus, uh, I think, might have left? He said something about getting…something hot to drink.” She leaned over the banister, staring towards the kitchen in confusion, “I checked, we already have tea, so…” 

Jester’s eyes sparkled, “Oh! He’s getting hot chocolate! I promise Nott, it’s  _so_ good. You’re going to  _love it_!” she twirled around, going back to the box to help Fjord and Yasha pull out the individual pieces of the tree needed to be set up, “Get Caleb!” 

Nott nodded, going up the stairs after a final confused look at the thing that did not at all look like a tree, and disappeared from sight with a soft click of a closing bedroom door. 

Jester, Fjord and Yasha, with Beau’s reading the instructions, set up the base and bottom part of the tree, Jester fluffing down the bows and branches to make it look less like a spiky green plant and more like the bottom of a tree. 

The front door creaked open once more while they were working on attaching the middle parts to the arrangement, and Caduceus stopped in the living room doorway, seven steaming mugs on a tray in hand, “Oh, this is nice. What are we doing?” 

“Setting a tree up for Winters Crest! Technically it isn’t necessary, because it doesn’t require a tree or anything, but people still sell trees to make the house look more cool inside anyway!” Jester explained, as Caleb’s footsteps sounded on the stairs as he came down, Nott at his back. 

Beau stood straight from where she’d been attacking more then fluffing out the tree, “It’s not really a holiday here in Wildemount either.”

“We agreed, the three of us, that it might be nice to do as a group though. Right, Beau?” Fjord said, voice a bit strained as he struggled with the tinsel around his arms. 

Caduceus smiled, placing the mugs down on the center coffee table that had been pushed aside for the tree, “That’s nice. Don’t think I’ve ever celebrated any holidays before. Family never did, as far as I know.” he tilted his head in thought. 

“There was never a reason to celebrate, besides maybe a good hunt, for me. So.” Yasha shrugged. 

Jester gasped, whirling around just as she’d finished getting the very top on, letting Fjord catch it before it wobbled off its perch, “Really? No holidays at all? That’s so sad!” she looked at Caleb and Nott at the bottom of the stairs, staring between the tree and the rest of the group, and in Nott’s case occasionally the box the tree came in where it lied on it’s side. 

“You’ve celebrated something at least, right?” 

Caleb stepped off the stairs, taking a seat on the couch beside Beau, “Something else, yes. Not Winter’s Crest, but a different holiday. I still got gifts, just one a day. It was nice.” 

Jester looked at Nott as she scurried to sit on the chairs arm, “Nott?”

“I’ve…heard of them? Yeza taught me a little about them, but, I’ve never done anything with them.” 

Jester straightened, arms folded as she looked around the room, a mess of pine needles under the tree, tinsel strewn around the room, and random assortment of ornaments on the tree and off, “Well then, this is everyone’s first Winters Crest! That’s good, we get to spend it like a family! Other holidays are good, but you know, because we totally all have never done this one before, it’s extra special! We can share in it being our first time with the holiday! Right?”

Beau nodded, brief smirk on her face as she dumped the glitter over the tree, “Right. Got a point there, Jess.” 

Jester smiled, watching everyone’s faces as they nodded at the idea, muttering too quietly to hear but not complaining, “Good! Alright, so, help me set up the tree, then we’ll swap presents if anyone has them.” 

They got to work, and soon the tree looked beautiful with all the decorations and glitter added to it. Jester admired it from her seat beside the others on the couch, hot chocolate handed out by Caduceus warming her as she drank, watching Nott hop out of the tree box to settle beside her to drink her own. 

Soon they’d share presents, but so far, it was a nice Winter’s Crest. One she was happy she could share with her friends for the first time. 

She was super grateful, and so so pleased they’d all been there to do it. 

She hoped to do it again next year!


End file.
